Little Falls transcript., 1887-03-18
E SHAMS AND FRAUDS.

tonao Unvarnished Truths About "sasai.
~ tstety" at the National Capital.
Although there is a great show and
my amount Of social position and
..rallk'' in Washington, there is not an
equal amount of wealth to support itin
two-thirds Of, the cases. The majority
fof those who shine in society and are,
the most prominent and irrepressiblt
are dependent on Government salariel,
and it takes close management to make
them suffice for plain living and place
In society. Many Of the Senators are
wealthy; but they are the only ones, as
class, who have. great wealth; and
the moneyed people, as the rich winter
residents who come only as private cit
teens are called, are easily counted.
Each season Washington runs over
with heiresses, and penniless girls, and
widows who come to Washington as to
great matrimonial market, and wear
themselves half out in the struggle to
get into and keepin society, Rich men
never come to hunt for wives in this
modern Smithfeld, aud when a New
York millionaire did take Washing
ton bride it was q pretty girl in strait
ened circumstances, who had never
been known in the society of army and
navy germans and legation balls.
Young army and naval officers
are the most mercinary lot of
oil, and they invariably save up
their leaves Of absence to spend them
in Washington during the winter
months. One miscreant in epaulets
once Mortified some married ladies by
saying: ut pays US poor fellows on
short commons to pass season in
Washington sending bouquets and
spending all our money on the girls;
for all the rich girls 60 there, and their
fortunes are only equivalents for the
social position that we can give them. "
Sometimes these gay Spectators get
terribly sold, as not every papa that
passes for a millionaire is really one,
and heiress is name very easily tick
'eted to a girl who dresses well. Re-
Gently there has been a notorious case
of one of these uninformed fortune.
hunters getting the supposed heiress
after long siege, only to find too late
that the fortune was all in the air, van
ished, gone up like smoke. To balance
this there is the case of another young
officer who, although engaged to great
heiress now in Europe finishing he1
French and buying her trousseau, long!
to be released from those golden fet
ters to marry penniless orphan EN-
ployed in one of the departments here
People who believe in the old-fashionet
love stories admire and sympathiz,
deeply with this crooked course of true
love, but his brother officers think tn,
distracted youth plain and simple
1 lunatic.
A joke is often told on one YER,
punculious army officer, who in tn
course of frontier experiences fount
his ex-laundress the wife of Congress
man. The laundress' rise and tn
growth of her husbands fortune coul,
not bring the ladies of the fort to rec
ognize her, and this particular officer
although now General. could remem
Der some stormy scenes, when, as
poor young Lieutenant, he had scores
and upbraided the laundress abou
matters of starch, buttons and plail
mending She fell in his way next a
some celebration or event where he
husband, the Congressman, was in ON
of the front carriages of the proces
sion, and she, the gorgeous figure, o
the platform crowded with the distir
guished people Of the day. The Ger
eral in his uniform was introduced an
her voice and face sent his memor
chasing backwards. just about as th
identity was becoming clear her tai
went on to the winter that she had ju.
passed in Washington. Her comment
on society and people at the capit'
wound up consolingly with this: "(
yes! I found, too, that army officers E
in quite good society at Washington.
When this got into army gossip it fu
nished as much amusement AZ q r
mark that once rose above the hum
voices at q dinner party here when Il
same woman, who looked sixty an
wore raven-black wig over IA
scanned with hundred wrinkles, sin
peringly said: !" Yes, j mean to WEI
baby blue until / am thirty. -" Wds
.t,sgton Cor. st. Louis Globe Densocrat.
j. i :: 4. TAGGING AT EToh. .. .